Outdoor power equipment is widely used for performing maintenance operations and modifications of land areas, including landscaping, forest care, lawn mowing, etc. Examples of such equipment include string trimmers, brush cutters, chain saws, blowers, aerators, spreaders, sprinklers, edgers, dethatchers, riding lawn mowers, walk behind lawn mowers, robotic lawn mowers, other cutting machines, etc. Usually the equipment is operated and controlled by an operator performing various actions in the area being worked and, in many situations, particularly in cases of professional use, at least two operators are working together in the same land area. In cases of large scale maintenance work with a fleet comprising multiple operators, e.g., as in landscaping industries, it may be difficult to keep track of the many operators and machines involved in a maintenance operation. Likewise it may be complicated to keep informed about the status of individual machines that are part of the fleet. This can lead to a situation where it is more or less impossible to be updated on the general performance of a machine fleet (e.g., how the different machines have been handled, the amount of working hours, performance, efficiency, etc.) and it may also become difficult to know the operational status (e.g., repairs, maintenance, cost of operation) of individual machines. This may cause additional costs related to repairs and downtime.
Another challenge related to fleet management is the amount of turnover of workers and the frequency with which inexperienced newcomers are placed in charge of a machine. Often there is a start-up period during which a beginner will be relatively inefficient. It may be difficult to monitor the beginner and provide the beginner or even other workers with detailed feedback regarding technique and machine operation simply because it is very inefficient to keep a constant watch during progressing working operation. Even after finishing an activity, it may be hard to provide constructive advice. Therefore worker training often takes much longer than desired. This may lead to inefficient and unsafe use of the machine, increased emission and fuel consumption, and increased wear and tear on the equipment.
Large-scale maintenance work such as landscaping, foresting, and ground care often involves a number of operators working in parallel leading to a very dynamic and continuously changing operative situation. Such a situation can easily get complex and may even involve a safety risk. For example, when several persons are spread out in an area it may be difficult for the individual person to keep track of surrounding co-workers due to characteristics of the landscape, noise levels, and reduced visibility. Under these conditions, two or more operators may accidentally get too close and interfere with each others work. This could lead to damage to the equipment and, in a worst case scenario, injury to the personnel.